The Arizona sentinel., 1887-02-05

A few weeks sojourn with the Cos sacks, eating, sleeping, marching and
 plundering with them, gave me an en- tirely new idea of their character. I had unconsciouslY formed my estima- ton of them from the traditions re- garding them common to this day all over continental Europe. They are al- ways alluded to as the bugbears of the human race, and their name, the sym
 bol of all that is cruel, is used as a potent terror to keep runaway children
 at home and to frighten them into obe- dience. l expected to find them, not child-eaters, to be sure, as they have been popularly reported in the nurser- ies, but at least barbarous, unwar- rantably cruel, and distinctly unciviliz- ed in tastes and habits. To my great surprise, they developed on acquaint- ance close similarity in various traits of character to Western frontiersmen. This is not so remarkable a fact as it would at first appear, for parallel ex- perience and kindred interests and oc- equations are naturally accountable for the same characteristics which dis tinguish the pioneer of the great West and the Cossack of the great East. Unlike the common Russians, they are independent in spirit, self-re- liant, and full of resource. They know little of the cringing servilIty that brands the ordinary slave as an inferior order of human beings. Their pride of race and position is unbounded, their faithfulness and loyalty almost phenomenal. Accustomed to commun- istic government, they are thoroughly republican in their notions, and know how to obey as well as to command. They are both prudent and brave prudent because they are acquainted with danger, brave because bravery is part of their creed. "The army may sleep in safety when Cossacks are at the outposts" is the common saying, for they are believed to scent danger afar off, and to be thus secure against sur- prises. They have the keen senses of the Indian fighter, and touch of the stoicism of the Indian himself. A prominent trait of their character, and one which seems unaccountable in con junction with their independence and self-reliance, is their superstitious faith in the observance of all sorts of re- GgiOus ceremonies and in all manner of signs and omens. The most trivial act is often prefaced by a brief prayer or appeal for Divine aid, and by the sign of the cross. They never eat without first standing erect, uncovering the head and repeating a few words of grace. In their list of signs and omens there are almost as many items as were noted by the augurs in old Roman times. In actual warfare they are the eyes, the ears and the mouthpiece of the army. They do the larger part of the scouting service and of cavalry out post duty, carry orders and dispatches there is no signal corps iii the Rus sian army-act as orderlies to the off cers, and perform all kinds of useful services. Whenever a man is needed for any thing outside the common camp duties, Cossack is sure to be summoned; wherever the army moves, the wiEy little horses with their iaunty riders are seen scampering in all direc- tions; wherever the advance guard of infantry penetrates, it is sure to find that the Cossacks have already left their mark, for they have the activity and the enterprise of true pioneers, and all the restlessness of savages.
 While they form one of the largest departments of the Russian army in time of peace and in time of war, they are entirely distinct from any other branch of the service. Even among the Russians the exact relations of the Cossacks to the government are not often clearly understood, and they are often looked upon more as allies than as subjects of the Czar. Like most existing institutions of that country, they are regarded as part of an order of things which knows no change. It was only after patient Interrogation of various persons in the face of this characteristic indifference to precise knowledge that succeeded in gaining clear idea of what and who the Cossacks are. Without vouching for the perfect accuracy of every detail of my information, I will give the history ofthe Cossacks as l gleaned it